Sterilizing apparatus for continuously sterilizing articles by flames means

ABSTRACT

A combination dishwasher and sterilizer. The dishwasher has a conveyor for dishes which carries the dishes through a chamber having several zones which include a prime rinse zone, a wash zone and a final rinse zone. From the final rinse zone, the dishes pass through flames from two gas burners which direct the gas flames onto the dishes both from above and from below, killing bacteria on the dishes. A heat exchanger is provided which utilizes the heat from the flames to heat the rinse water for the final rinse.

United States Patent Kereluk 1 Feb. 15,1972

154] STERILIZING APPARATUS FOR CONTINUOUSLY STERILIZING ARTICLES BYFLAMES MEANS [72] Inventor: Karl Kereluk, Fairview, Pa.

[7 3] Assignee: American Sterilizer Company, Erie, Pa.

[22] Filed: Sept. 3, 1969 [21 1 Appl. No.: 854,996

[52] US. Cl "134/83, 21/92, 134/19, 134/105, 263/6 [51] Int. Cl...A6113/00, B081: 3/10, F27b 9/20 [58] FieldoiSearch ..l34/19,82, 83,105, 106, 107; 21/78, 79,80, 92

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,136,110 4/1915 Eberhart..134/19UX 1,215,107 2/1917 Bush ..2l/79 UX 1,761,812 6/1930 Breton..21/80 UX 1,992,460 2/1935 Baldwin ..21/79 2,036,503 4/1936 Russell134/107 UX 2,095,502 10/1937 Johnston... ..21/80 X 2,644,473 7/1953 Foxet a1. ..134/72 3,018,184 1/1962 Martin ..21/78 UX PrimaryExaminer-Daniel Blum Attorney-Charles L. Lovercheck 1 1 ABSTRACT Acombination dishwasher and sterilizer. The dishwasher has a conveyor fordishes which carries the dishes through a chamber having several zoneswhich include a prime rinse zone, a wash zone and a final rinse zone.From the final rinse zone, the dishes pass through flames from two gasburners which direct the gas flames onto the dishes both from above andfrom below, killing bacteria on the dishes. A heat exchanger is providedwhich utilizes the heat from the flames to heat the rinse water for thefinal rinse.

10 Claims, 2 Drawing Figures )unnnluiununnn "in"! nu;

PATENTEDFEB15 m2 DR. KARL KERSLUk hynu ununuavnua-n aununnynunwnunununununununununununun-nunqn-nuaunu nun-a nunumqj STERILIZING APPARATUSFOR CONTINUOUSLY STERILIZING ARTICLES BY FLAMES MEANS STATEMENT OFINVENTION This invention relates to sterilizers and, more particularly,to combination dishwashers and a flame sterilizer. In the inventiondisclosed herein, direct flame sterilizer is provided to sterilizedishes and eating utensils as they pass through a dishwasher. An openflame is directed onto the dishes as they are removed from thedishwasher; that is, the dishes move on a conveyor which passes betweenthe long flames from gas jets and plays on the dishes. A heat reflectoris provided below the flames to reflect heat onto the dishes to drythem. It is an object of the invention to provide an improvedcombination dishwasher and sterilizer.

REFERENCE TO PRIOR ART Prior patents which show open flames used forsterilizing are shown in US. Pat. No. 2,345,72l US. Pat No. 958,259 butno one has, to applicant's knowledge, used an open flame in combinationwith a dishwasher to sterilize dishes as they move from a dishwasher.

OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the invention to provide animproved dishwasher-sterilizer combination.

Another object of the invention is to provide an improved open flamesterilizer.

Yet another object is to provide a combination dishwasher and sterilizerwherein the heat from an open flame sterilizer is utilized in a heatexchanger to heat the water in a final rinse stage ofthe washing phase.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG, I is a longitudinal view partly incross section ofa dishwasher-sterilizer combination according to theinvention.

FIG. 2 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view taken on line 2-2 of FIG.1.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The drawings show thedishwasher-sterilizer combination which is enclosed in a chamber havinga suitable top 51, bottom 52, entrance 30, and discharge opening 3] fortrays of dishes or the like. The chamber is supported on legs 43.

A conveyor 1] which may be the conventional roller-type conveyor isshown which may support trays of dishes or utensils. The trays passthrough the entrance 30, through the wash rinse zone 12, a wash zone 13,and a final rinse zone 14. These zones will be supplied water throughline 33, which will be discharged through drain line 34. Water for thewash-rinse zone 12, the wash zone 13, and the final rinse zone 14 issupplied t'rom water dispensing means I5, 16, and 17 respective ly.These are connected in series with lines 33 and 34 as shown. It will benoted that water from line 33 flows through the dispensing means 17first so that the final rinse water is hotter than the wash water inzone 13. Likewise, the washrinse water for zone 12 is least hot sincethe water is adjacent the drain line 34 at this point.

The water to the final rinse zone 14 will be heated by a booster heatexchanger output part I8, which will e supplied heat from the heatexchanger input part 19. The heat exchanger input part 19 receives itsheat from convection from the flames from jets 22 and 23 as the hot gasfrom these flames passes over the heat exchanger and is caught in thehood 26 and flows out a suitable vent through the exhaust stack 37 andout the chimney 38. A damper 39 is provided to regulate the flow of hotgases. The heat exchanger 19 is supported in the path of convection ofthe hot gases flowing from the burners as they escape to the exhauststack 37. These heat exchangers 19 can be any of the well-known type ofheat exchangers familiar to those skilled in the art, such as, forexample, mned tube heat exchangers, plain pipes, or any other suitabletype of heat exchanger.

Gas is supplied from line 2] from which it flows to the laterallyextending line 40 and to line 25 and to line 41, which are connected tothe line 21 in a generally U-shaped arrangement. The jets 22 and 23 aresupported on the lines 40 and 41 respectively.

The upper burners are indicated at 23 and the lower burners areindicated at 22. The flames from burners 22 and 23 are indicated at 42and 43 and will impinge on the dishes and fairly cover them so that whenthe dishes pass through exit opening 31, they will be thoroughlysterilized and dried.

The flame sterilizer, made up oflines 21, 25, 40 and 41, can be used asan add-on to an existing sterilizer.

The foregoing specification sets forth the invention in its preferredpractical forms but the structure shown is capable of modificationwithin a range of equivalents without departing from the invention whichis to be understood is broadly novel as is commensurate with theappended claims.

Iclaim;

l. A washer-sterilizer combination comprising,

a chamber,

washing means in said chamber having a washing section and a sterilizingsection,

means to move dishes through said chamber, through said washing section,and through said sterilizing section,

sterilizing means in said sterilizing section disposed in a positionspaced from said washing section,

said sterilizing means comprising a flame generating means below saiddishes and directing a first flame onto said dishes and a flamegenerating means above said dishes directing a second flame onto saiddishes from above said first flame overlapping said second flame wherebysaid flames engage said dishes and whereby said dishes are sterilized.

2. The combination recited in claim 1 wherein said sterilizing meanscomprises a plurality of laterally disposed gas burners supported belowsaid conveyor.

3. The combination recited in claim 1 wherein said sterilizing meanscomprises a plurality of said gas burners spaced laterally and disposedabove said conveyor and a plurality of said gas burners spaced laterallyfrom each other and supported below said conveyor and adapted to projectflames on said dishes.

4. The combination recited in claim 3 wherein a hood is supported abovesaid gas flame and exhaust means is connected to said hood for removingexhaust gases from said chamber.

5. The combination recited in claim 4 wherein a first heat exchangerpart is supported in said hood and a second heat exchanger part isconnected to said first heat exchanger part and said second heatexchanger part being disposed in operative relation with a rinse watersource for heating said rinse water.

6. The combination recited in claim 5 wherein a first heat exchangerpart is supported above said flames.

7. The combination recited in claim 5 wherein said chamber has a primerinse zone, a wash zone and a final rinse zone through which dishes arecarried on a conveyor prior to said sterilizing means.

8. The combination recited in claim 7 wherein said conveyor is a rollerconveyor having longitudinally spaced rollers laterally extending.

9. The combination recited in claim 7 wherein said flame generatingmeans supported on said chamber above said conveyor comprise a gas lineextending laterally substantially from one side of said chamber to theother and spaced gas burners adapted to provide long flames attached tosaid line.

10. The combination recited in claim 7 wherein said burners below saidconveyor comprise a laterally extending pipe extending substantiallyfrom one side of said chamber to the other and spaced burners attachedto said pipe.

1. A washer-sterilizer combination comprising, a chamber, washing meansin said chamber having a washing section and a sterilizing section,means to move dishes through said chamber, through said washing section,and through said sterilizing section, sterilizing means in saidsterilizing section disposed in a position spaced from said washingsection, said sterilizing means comprising a flame generating meansbelow said dishes and directing a first flame onto said dishes and aflame generating means above said dishes directing a second flame ontosaid dishes from above said first flame overlapping said second flamewhereby said flames engage said dishes and whereby said dishes aresterilized.
 2. The combination recited in claim 1 wherein saidsterilizing means comprises a plurality of laterally disposed gasburners supported below said conveyor.
 3. The combination recited inclaim 1 wherein said sterilizing means comprises a plurality of said gasburners spaced laterally and disposed above said conveyor and aplurality of said gas burners spaced laterally from each other andsupported below said conveyor and adapted to project flames on saiddishes.
 4. The combination recited in claim 3 wherein a hood issupported above said gas flame and exhaust means is connected to saidhood for removing exhaust gases from said chamber.
 5. The combinationrecited in claim 4 wherein a first heat exchanger part is supported insaid hood and a second heat exchanger part is connected to said firstheat exchanger part and said second heat exchanger part being disposedin operative relation with a rinse water source for heating said rinsewater.
 6. The combination recited in claim 5 wherein a first heatexchanger part is supported above said flames.
 7. The combinationrecited in claim 5 wherein said chamber has a prime rinse zone, a washzone and a final rinse zone through which dishes are carried on aconveyor prior to said sterilizing means.
 8. The combination recited inclaim 7 wherein said conveyor is a roller conveyor having longitudinallyspaced rollers laterally extendiNg.
 9. The combination recited in claim7 wherein said flame generating means supported on said chamber abovesaid conveyor comprise a gas line extending laterally substantially fromone side of said chamber to the other and spaced gas burners adapted toprovide long flames attached to said line.
 10. The combination recitedin claim 7 wherein said burners below said conveyor comprise a laterallyextending pipe extending substantially from one side of said chamber tothe other and spaced burners attached to said pipe.